The Spook's Christmas Carol
by kittygirl320
Summary: Based around the storyline of Disney's A Christmas Carol. John Gregory has found out something he feared would develop between his ex-apprentice and the girl. So consequently, he has concluded as a final decision to send poor Alice away. Can the Christmas ghosts help him change his ways before it's too late?
1. Tom Ward

It was a chilly Christmas Eve: a little too cold for my liking; it only added to the worry of the dark that had been unusually stable and calm. The winter winds rattled harshly against the windows, its whistles scraping against the roof. Shadows of tall sycamore and ash trees shaking vigorously in the freezing hostile air outside formed on the cold flagstones in the kitchen, creeping up the walls inside. The fire didn't help that illusion, either.  
Even Kratch, the pet hairy boggart who took the shape of a large ginger tom cat when he appeared, was curled up by the fire with his ginger fur appearing softer and longer than usual. His snoring rattled the crockery, pots and pans, but none of us could be less concerned.  
Alice was sitting on her usual stool beside me, looking glum, the Spook in his chair with the usual thoughtful look on his grim face that looked like it had been chiseled from stone. As for me, I was also sitting on a stool and, unlike Alice who kept her eyes downcast towards the flagstones by her feet, continued to stare at my old master, hoping he'd come to a conclusion on his thoughts and just tell us.  
Even though I was now eighteen, the Spook still treated me like a boy despite the fact my apprenticeship had ended almost a year ago.

"Well, what do you think, lad?" Mr Gregory finally asked, snapping me out of my thoughts, his green eyes boring into mine.  
"The dark seems a little quiet ever since we dealt with the Fiend," I replied.

It was true that we'd bound the Fiend for eternity so no one could raise him again; ever since our return, things had seemingly changed – not just the bond between Alice and me.  
"You already said that five minutes ago, lad," the Spook jibbed in a grumble.  
I suddenly realised this and fell silent, not knowing what else to say.  
"What's going on with you?"  
"Hmm?"  
The Spook slumped in his chair, burying his face in his hand in frustration.  
"Why is it you're lacking so much concentration?" he demanded irritably.  
I just shrugged, not knowing what I could say to save me from yet another lecture.  
The Spook then stretched out his arms and gave a yawn.  
"I think that just about settles it…"  
Here, the Spook got to his feet and started for the stairs.  
"Where are you going?" I asked curiously.  
"Off to bed, lad, it's been a…_long _night." The Spook then looked at me as though he blamed me for this. "Soon, you should be too," he continued.

I waited until he'd descended the stairs before I, too, climbed to my feet and made my way over to Alice. She hadn't said a word since supper, which wasn't like her at all.  
I crouched down so my head was level with hers, slid my arm around her petite shoulders and kissed her cheek.  
"What's wrong, Alice – you haven't said a word since supper. Are you all right?"  
"I'm fine, Tom," she answered quickly as she looked up at me, her smile appearing a little too forced.  
I smiled warmly, determined to find out.  
"I did not think that my own wife would try and hide something from me."  
It was true; Alice and I married in secret not long ago, wanting a future together. Naturally, we never told the Spook for fear of his reaction – we'd only had a few people as witnesses whom we could trust with our secret.  
"Have you told him, Tom?" asked Alice suddenly, changing the subject.  
"Told who what?" I asked teasingly to try and cheer her up.  
"You know...Old Gregory about...you know...us…together…like…_this_?" she whispered like he wasn't far from us as her head bowed slightly.  
"I don't think this is the best time, Alice, he's just really got his mind set on the dark for the time being," I replied.  
Alice sighed and looked away from me.  
"Alice?"  
"It's just…I don't feel comfortable with having to sneak into your room every night, then sneak back to my old room in the morning, act like we're just friends," Alice told me after a long pause.  
"Is that what this is all about?" I asked her gently.  
Alice stared down at the cold flagstones again before nodding, a tear cascading down her rosy cheek.  
I cupped her chin and lifted it so I could look into those beautiful big brown eyes of hers, my thumb caressing her cheek.  
"Let's just go to bed, it's getting late," I suggested to her. "Mr Gregory's already gone up to bed so you don't have to sneak into mine tonight," I winked.  
Alice nodded and finally smiled, playfully tapping my shoulder. Hand in hand, we got to our feet and headed for the stairs, Alice's head resting on my shoulder…  
Only to meet Mr Gregory at the top!

He looked infuriated, tapping his foot at a furious pace with his arms folded firmly as he gave us both a stern look that seemed more like a frown. His thick dark eyebrow raised, he seemed to be waiting for an explanation.  
"Did you..."  
"I heard every word, lad, and you won't be sleeping together tonight, nor ever again! You, girl, will be sold as a maid to a family by tomorrow afternoon and that's final," he scowled coldly like the snow falling a blizzard outside.  
"But you can't!" I cried, "It's immoral and you can't separate us, you just can't!"  
"Can't I, lad? As long as I live and breathe no woman is going to distract you, especially not a witch like _her_."  
"You can't do that, it's Christmas," Alice retorted angrily.  
I gripped her hand tighter.  
"Just go to your rooms!" he bellowed.  
Both Alice and I knew better than to argue when the Spook was in a mood like this, so we obeyed.

I walked up to Alice's room with her and held her close, kissing her goodnight. When we separated our lips, we hugged tightly.  
I whispered softly into her ear, "You won't be sold Alice, not if I can help it."  
I'd spoken with more confidence than I felt, but I knew that I would take any measure necessary to ensure that Alice stayed with me. I should've told the Spook earlier and now, Alice was going to pay the price if nothing was to be done.  
She cried softly and so I took both her hands in mine, putting some distance between us so I could look at her.  
"Don't worry, Alice."  
"Don't you remember what happened the last time?" she asked.  
I nodded.  
"And that won't happen again," I promised.  
Alice kissed my cheek before disappearing into her room, closing the door after one last sorrowful glance over her shoulder my way.  
Even though she wasn't that far from me, now we were married, it just didn't feel right.

I slammed the door to my room and tried to get some rest, hoping to get up early enough to stop the Spook before he took my wife to some family far from here.  
Nonetheless, it was hard to even close my eyes for a moment whilst I tried to come up with something that might have the tiniest hope of saving Alice and I yet another unbearable separation like the one that took place four years ago.  
Then, before I even had time to think of something, the Spook strode in.  
"I know this will be hard for you, lad, but the girl is bad for you. She's only ever brought you trouble, trouble follows her because of who she is, and that won't change. Besides, spooks are not meant to have families – and for good reason too – you know that, lad."  
I continued to stare up at the ceiling, unable to so much as look at him and care where he was standing.  
"How can you understand and say that? Alice is more than capable of taking care of herself. You just want to stop me from having something you never had," I told him far more bitterly than I meant.  
After I'd said it, I regretted it and it certainly didn't make me feel like the better person here.  
"You'll feel like that now, lad, but in time, you will thank me some day."  
That's all the Spook said before he closed the door and walked away like it was a normal night for him. Of course he wouldn't have the tiniest bit of remorse for what he was doing, his past with women had made him a cold-hearted, now overbearing man.  
I started to sob like the boy I once was. Alice was everything to me and if I lost her again, I knew I just wouldn't be able to take it. There was just no guarantee this family would treat her fairly.

The winds blustered with more force and an angrier, wilder blizzard started. It was like the endless storm inside my heart. After all, I loved Alice far too much to just let her go. I was a fool for doing that once – and I'd vowed I wouldn't make that mistake again. I still stood by that even now, I wouldn't give up without a fight for her. 


	2. John Gregory

I just could not believe him!  
He acted like he knew what love was, like he knew the cost, but he knew nothing. Why is it so hard sometimes to make someone see the amount of trouble they can get themselves into? He never was easy to knock some sense into but this...him married to a witch...it's like he was lying when he claimed he read about my time with Meg. I knew he thought that I couldn't see the amount of damage a lamia witch could do, but I knew, I just didn't want to admit it.  
Aye, she was a lamia – and a strong one too – but that's nothing compared to giving your heart to a witch (at a young age) who is the daughter of a malevolent, powerful witch and the Fiend himself, both corrupting all light. I knew that the girl was bad for him ever since she came into his life and I couldn't comprehend why he couldn't see it too.  
But I stood by what I'd said; the girl was to go in the morning.

So anyway, after trying to make the lad see sense, I took myself off to bed feeling exhausted. However, exhausted though I felt, as I lay in the darkness, I was wide awake, like I was expecting something.  
Despite the calm, sleepy atmosphere, it soon quickly changed to that of ice. A shiver ran down my spine, indicating that something not of this world was present or arriving. I shot bolt upright, only to find the ghostly appearance of my loyal friend (and ex-apprentice) Bill Arkwright. His skin was singed and in some parts, singed to the bone. I knew this was because he'd died in Greece as the Ord burnt to ash to bide me, the lad and the girl time to escape.  
I was shocked and lost for words.  
When I found them, they slipped out rather rudely.  
"What are you doing here?" I asked.  
Then, I noted chains linked to his body.  
Bill followed my gaze and chuckled a little.  
"These are the chains I've built in life. Even though I tried to do good, I also did bad by drinking and constantly resorting to violence," Bill explained. "Also, there were those I'd met in my lifetime who weren't all that bad and still, I did them wrong like they were a true denizen."  
"I still don't understand why you're here..." I asked this because I knew that a ghost would always have a reason to come back, that and he hadn't answered my question the first time.  
"I'm here to warn you," he began, an echo to his regular voice, "As your friend, I do not want you to suffer the same fate. Your chains of darkness are already being woven and what you chose for the girl tonight, the twilight ghosts have decided."  
I stared at him in confusion. I was much older than he was so who was he to tell me this? All the same, I kept an open mind and listened intently.  
"The Grim Reaper – the master of ghosts – is sending you three ghosts tonight. Listen to them, John, if you take it in, they will help stop the chains from being woven and you will not forever roam in Limbo. One will show you a past memory, another the happenings at present, and the last what lies in wait for you in the future presently if you keep to your ways. Though, I must warn you, the third and final ghost is mysterious and dark, so be prepared."  
"Wait," I said as I noted Bill's form fading. "How can there be chains of darkness if I'm not owned by the dark?"  
"I'm out of time...listen, John...be prepared...listen..." and he was gone.

I fell into bitter thoughts. I would not change my mind. It was a spook's rule not to marry, like it was a priest's rule, and it was in both the husband and wife's interests. A woman had no place in a spook's life because they would be constantly in danger, kept a close eye on, and the spook would never have time for his wife. This applied especially if the chosen bride was wilful, then they would become a distraction. The former was also the case with Judd Brinscall, another ex-apprentice of mine that took over the mill after poor Bill Arkwright's death. He lost the love of his life, Cosmina Fresque, to the dark. She was possessed not long before their wedding was to take place.  
Alice Deane could take care of herself, I knew that full well, but she was still the daughter of the Fiend and could turn to the dark anytime. She knew more than any other witch would know and would also know by now the lad's weaknesses and us spooks' techniques used to deal with the dark. She'd shatter the lad's heart and she'd then become a true threat – one that the lad could never find the heart to deal with properly, just as I couldn't with Meg. Not only that, she'd be dangerous and would eventually drag the lad down to the depths of the dark with her.

Feeling cold as winter, I lay back onto the pillow and closed my eyes, thinking this was all a dream. My theory, I believed, was confirmed when I opened them briefly again to find the room empty, clean of all evidence of a ghostly presence.


	3. Christmas Ghost of Past

The room felt cold again.  
I awoke to get up and close the window when I felt, yet, another chill down my spine. I jerked up thinking it was Bill and, if it had been a dream before, then perhaps I was just dreaming what was going to happen.  
I was wrong. Standing by the foot of the bed was a girl in a faint ghostly lilac form. There was a pale yellow glow around her though her face looked like...  
"What are you doing in here, girl?" I demanded coldly, "I've already made up my mind and you _will _be sent to that family tomorrow, Christmas or not!"  
"What in the name of..._Oh!_ You mean Alice Deane. I ain't no Alice, I'm the Christmas ghost of past. I show mortals their past lives that may help shape and change their grim future," the girl explained.  
I moved up the bed a little, finding this hard to believe and ran through logical thoughts quickly. The girl would do anything to stay and manipulate the lad, but I'd never heard of witches taking the form of a ghost.  
My thoughts were interrupted.  
"We ain't got time to linger, we need to go," said the ghost.  
"Go? Go where?" I asked curiously.  
"Why, to a few memories of your Christmas of course! Why else would I be sent to a dusty old...not that there's anything wrong with...Though, I must admit, two memories ain't nice to watch."  
What the ghost said was all rather confusing.  
Before I could ask the ghost to repeat herself, she threw a golden bauble on the floorboards and the bauble opened up to reveal a golden portal.  
The ghost held out her hand but I shook my head uncertainly.  
She tutted with a sigh and beckoned me forward, tiny orbs of light floating from her fingers to me, dragging me out of bed to draw level with her.  
The ghost took my hand and we jumped through the portal.

It was like floating in Limbo, from all that I understood. We were floating calmly and at a steady pace. Tiny orbs of yellow light surrounded us in a spiral amongst the golden swirling dust.  
Then, at a time when I was getting used to and admiring this, the portal formed a hole of white light and we sped up our pace, the ghost dragging me towards it incredibly fast, so fast that I found it hard to catch my breath.  
"Sorry about the speed," she called over her shoulder, "But this is necessary if we are to make it through the light."  
"What? What are you talking about, girl?"  
But it was too late. We were already fast-approaching the light that seemed to be close to blinding me as we drew nearer.  
Finally, the light engulfed me and I, unwilling to lose my sight, squeezed my eyes tight shut.

"You can open your eyes now, sir," invited a familiar voice.  
It hadn't been a dream; the ghost was standing beside me. We were standing in a kitchen with cold flagstones, a table at the centre with nine chairs and a fireplace. It looked very different to my Chipenden house. But it was still a house I remembered from my childhood.  
A house with both fond memories and ones I'd rather forget.  
We were back at my deceased parents' house in Horshaw: Number 13 Watery Lane.

Sitting at the square wooden table was some of my older brothers, one of which was still alive. My older brother Andrew and the others were sitting there. It struck me at how young we all looked and when I looked back at me, the youngest and smallest, it struck me greatly. For so long I'd been focusing on all the bad memories, I forgot the good. My mother was putting the dinner on the plates and my father, a strong and healthy man at the time, was smiling and we all joked together. It was snowing outside and I gasped in memory of when this was.  
"I remember this Christmas!" Then I turned to a look of solemn. "It was the last Christmas we had with my oldest brother. I never heard from him again."  
"That much is true," said the ghost, "But look how happy you all are, without a care of the future and focusing on your time together. That counts, don't it?" asked the ghost.  
I nodded.  
"See? You focus on all the wrong things. Creates a bad image of you, Mr Gregory, sir," said the ghost.  
Then I realised and was shocked again.  
The ghost realised too and explained, "People can't sense us. They can neither hear nor see us, sir. Although, animals are more wary."  
That made sense because after all, what's the point in revisiting a memory if it will change when you visit and people notice you?  
I felt a tear roll down my cheek. It was like I was a little boy again, like I was back home and oblivious to the realities of the hostile world.  
The ghost then turned to the small clock she pulled out of her dress pocket.  
"Just look at the time! We need to be going to the next memory," the ghost sounded exasperated.  
She then dragged me through another hole of light without warning.

When we came through, it felt like the room was shaking.  
"Can you stop...wait a minute..." I took in the surroundings as I recognised the Anglezarke house. I came to the decision we were in the living room as there on the settee was Meg, looking radiant by the fire as her long fair hair glowed like her milk white skin. She was smiling up at me as my arm was around her shoulders.  
"Merry Christmas, John," she said in her usual, sweet, melodious voice.  
"Merry Christmas, Meg," my younger self replied.  
"It was her first Christmas at the Anglezarke house. Despite the cold damp air, she seemed to enjoy it here," I explained to the ghost.  
"That much is true, sir, but she enjoyed it here 'cos she was with you. But that all changed, didn't it? Once she told you about the baby," the ghost asked me, though it was more of a telling.  
I nodded as I watched.  
It was then that Meg told me about how we were having a baby together and how we were starting a family. Being a spook, I knew this was not good because I would never be there for the child.  
The ghost clicked her fingers and time skipped to the part where Meg and I were arguing. It was just the expression on my face that got to me, how fiery and emotionless my eyes were towards Meg and the tears welling in her beautiful eyes, yet I didn't seem to care. It had been so long, I forgot about the things I'd said to Meg to make her not care for me as much as I still cared for her. That night, I even old her how she wasn't ready to be a mother, how we wouldn't make very good parents. Meg had ran upstairs crying, and rightfully so.  
"You caused the spite between you two. You could've had a family together. Perhaps then you would be able to give Thomas Ward advice on how to be a good partner and a father, but you gave your newborn daughter to someone else, didn't you?" asked the ghost.  
I nodded. Even though I'd held that tiny bundle, bringing her over to Meg, and thought for a moment how perfect the world seemed, I did turn it all away and Meg wouldn't speak to me for a couple of days after crying as I left her bedside to hand over the child to someone else. That was the child Marcia almost killed, that was why nothing was said between me and Meg. I knew that Meg always wanted to be a mother and I got in the way.  
I shook my head.  
"Aye, I could've done so but still, the girl could never be in his life. She's from a dark family," I retorted.  
The ghost nodded.  
"That's true enough but let me show you why she never took to her mother's side, nor stayed with her family..."  
I closed my eyes, expecting to be dragged into another portal. Instead, the ghost clicked her fingers three times.

We were in, unmistakeably, Bony Lizzie's old house that was burnt to the ground. There was the girl, lying on the floor and her mother grinning fiendishly.  
"Elizabeth summoned sprogs on her daughter who had just refused to do one thing. She almost died..."  
The ghost nodded towards the sprogs climbing towards the girl, one sticking its tentacles up her nose. It was only then she cried out.  
"Was it like this all the time?" I asked, purely out of curiosity.  
"All the time. Imagine: constantly living in fear that one day you may never wake up, at a time when you don't know that this is your parent."  
The ghost did have a point, I couldn't argue with that. All the same, it just increased the girl's chances of turning to the dark. I told the ghost as much and she sighed in defeat.  
"Before I take you back, there is one last memory I'd like to show you," said the ghost.  
I nodded and the ghost clicked her fingers three times again.

This time, we were in an unfamiliar house. A child of around five or six years old was leaning against the stairs in fear, looking ready to spring up them. She had long dark hair and big round brown eyes. Her skin was a sickly pale at the sight of the belt that was about to whip her again.  
Already, she had a swollen lip taking the length of half her bottom lip, a cut along the corner of her mouth and a bruised eye. Her father was about to beat her again and I was surprised. The child clearly was in enough pain as it was as she tried to block another blow with her forearm. But the buckle struck it and the child yelped.  
Her father grinned as though he took pleasure in seeing his daughter like this and gestured his wife to follow him out of the house.  
"Is that..."  
The ghost nodded sadly before I could finish my sentence.  
"Alice Deane. From what I've been told by others, she don't really talk about her past as it pains her," the ghost replied.  
"I can see why," I answered. It was barbaric to hit a child of that age so brutally for a small thing. Even now I could see the girl trembling as she slid down the two steps and sprawled out on the floor, whimpering and crying softly in agony. She was rubbing her reddened forearm, whispering, what looked like, a promise to herself as she curled up into a ball, shivering, on her side.  
"What is she saying?" I asked.  
"She's promising that when she's older, she'll live better than this, have comfort and love. Thomas gave her that promise and you're taking that away again. Can you see what I'm saying?" asked the ghost.  
I fell silent. This was just another excuse this ghost was making for a daughter of darkness itself. How did I even know what she was showing me was real?  
So I shook my head in final answer.  
With another defeated sigh, the ghost dragged me through the portal behind us that I hadn't realised was there until I was unceremoniously dragged through it yet again.

I was in my bed after a flash of light, like I never travelled through a portal and the ghost was standing in the exact same place as before.  
"Gave it a good try, I did, but you're just too blind to see. The second ghost, the Christmas ghost of present, will be arriving in an hour's time," said the ghost, pointing matter-of-factly.  
"What?" But the ghost had vanished.  
I shrugged, thinking it was yet another dream after sitting there for a few moments, and lay my head back onto the pillow. I fell into a, surprisingly, most sudden sleep.


	4. Christmas Ghost of Present

I was awoken by a sneeze.  
When my eyes lazily peeled open, I felt, another chill run down my spine for the third time. As I lifted my head, I noted lilac and green dust on my pillow. I lifted my upper body completely off the bed sharply to find a ghost in the room. This one was a candle with the face of a young boy in the flame. The flame was opaque lilac and the candle was an opaque green, the outer glow a brighter green.  
"Wh-who are you?" I demanded in astonishment.  
"Did that cheery sprite-ghost not tell you? I am the Christmas ghost of present," he declared with a calm, peaceful whispering voice.  
"A sprite-ghost?"  
This would be something to add to the bestiary.  
"A baby ghost who is earlier in years. Her name was once Evelyn Hurst, you know, but she has to take the form of someone the host of these visits recently wronged. She is also locator of ghosts when captured by sorcerers, in Limbo," the Christmas ghost explained.  
My eyes widened. I recalled the dark mage, Morgan telling me during his apprenticeship how he fell in love with the Hursts' daughter and they gave them both suffering. They placed the blame on the lad when their daughter committed suicide. The lad certainly hadn't been heartbroken for long.  
"I suppose you're here to show me the present?" I guessed with an irritable sigh, hating to dwindle too much on what had already passed and was too late to change.  
The Christmas ghost of present nodded with a merry, yet calm smile.  
I groaned inside but got out of bed. This was happening even if it were against my will.  
The ghost took my hand and dragged be through an orb of green light that he conjured with one loud breath. He pulled us through and it was a similar experience to the one before, only with green instead of gold.

We landed softly in a room with a single bed. It was a room I'd always put my apprentices to rest their heads.  
The ghost's flame-head gestured towards the bed with a nod.  
I looked to find the lad wasn't sleeping alone. In his arms was the girl and I felt my face heat up, my chest leaping once as I glared.  
"Look..." and the ghost pulled us closer to the bed so we were looming over the two.  
Both were still awake, the lad caressing the girl's arm, near her shoulder, in comfort and whispering soothingly to her. She was crying into his chest and the tears were soaking the lad's nightshirt.  
"Oh, Tom! Looks like I will be sent away," she wept.  
"Sh-sh-sh...I won't give up, Alice. I need you here with me," he whispered gently.  
"I just can't bear it if we're separated! My everything, you are. Ever since I was a little girl, I dreamt of living in a safe, warm house with someone to care for me who would always be there. All my life I lived in uncertainty...until I met you...now Old Gregory's going to snatch this dream from me that you made possible."  
"It wasn't what I made possible, Alice...we made it possible."  
This made me even more angry, to see those two with such love when it would all come crashing down in the end.  
Realising his plan was failing, the ghost took us through another green orb of light before I had time to take in the rest of their conversation, to see if the girl would sway my ex-apprentice to plot against me.

We landed softly again and this time, we were outside a cottage. It had two windows in the thatched roof, four windows on the walls, covered in snow.  
"Where have you taken me now?" I demanded, annoyed.  
"This is the household of the daughter you gave away. Never named her so her adoptive parents called the orphan Leila," the ghost explained.  
He then took hold of my hand again and dragged us through the door. I thought it was to knock me to the ground but I, like he did, made it through with ease.  
On the sofa sat a young twenty-six year old girl with golden blonde hair, lips painted purple. Her eyes were a rare silvery green that changed colour when in different light. Her skin reminded me of Meg's like her long flowing hair.  
"Is that my -" I was cut off by the ghost.  
"That is your granddaughter. That is your daughter..." The ghost nodded towards an elderly woman in her early sixties. She had hazel eyes that were only a little dulled by time. Her hair was silver like Meg's was when I last saw her. I could not believe I gave all this up.  
"Those two are your son-in-law and grandson-in-law," the ghost told me, gesturing towards the two at a round table. The younger one had light brown hair and deep brown eyes, the other with grey hair and green eyes.  
"Your daughter used to have dark hair like you. Look closely at your granddaughter..." the ghost instructed.  
When I did so, I noted a small bump.  
"Your grandson-in-law is not the father of her baby. It is Alice Deane's father; her husband is there to protect her and the baby. It was his idea she bear the Fiend a child, so she was protected because when everyone thought he wouldn't go, an oracle told the people that there would be a day when he would be at his most powerful. Your granddaughter took his visit to this little town to her advantage."  
As I took all of this in, the ghost told me something that infuriated me.  
"Alice Deane will soon also be in this condition, I believe."  
"The lad will not see her, she is still going tomorrow," I growled.  
"Is your principle really worth the cost of your old apprentice's presence, sir? Do you really wish him not to have the happiness he deserves, wants and already has? Do you really want to snatch this from the both of them? You gave up your family, sir, with all due respects, but do not take away someone else's," the ghost advised.  
When I listened, I felt as though a glow came to my mind's eye. I felt a sudden change of heart. Perhaps there was still hope for the girl. After all, she'd been through enough as it was.  
I was so close to changing my mind, when my own daughter said something that hardened my resolve once more.  
"So, Leila, were Mr and Mrs Blakesby really your parents?" asked my grandson-in-law.  
My daughter shook her head.  
"I've been told his name is John Gregory, my real father, and he was a spook that trapped mam in a cellar. I want nothing to do with someone like that. My daughter is having nothing to do with him either."  
"Did you ever meet your mother, mammy?" asked my granddaughter, patting her belly gently.  
"Yes, dear, that's how I know. You know when I went to Greece for the week? It was to go and see her. On your adoptive grandmother's deathbed, she told me where to find her," my daughter answered.  
That annoyed me even more. It was the very reminder my daughter was part lamia.  
So I shook my head.  
"If the girl is going to be in that condition, the baby will truly be dangerous. The lad told me his mother was Lamia herself, a woman I trusted as well. Nay, it's all for the best. Take me home!" I ordered bitterly.  
The ghost sighed as the previous one had done before dragging me through a hole of light once more.

I sat up after feeling a jolt and then a flash inside of my head.  
It was just a dream, but I learned so much and it seemed so real.  
_Christmas ghost of future will be here on the next hour, _came a calm voice inside my head. Feeling my head throb just from trying to decide, I leaned back on the pillow and shut my eyes once more.  
How on Earth were three dreams of mine linked together…and all in one night?


	5. Christmas Ghost of Future

Three times the clock struck, three times its ticks were at it's loudest.  
Several shivers ran down my spine: one a warning that something from the dark was approaching, the others from the terror of what might come. My instincts told me to trust the previous dream and cautiously open my eyes.  
I opened first one eye to view the gloom, then the other. They examined the room closely.  
It was there; in one of the far corners of the room, a figure was slumped against it. When it straightened, I saw how tall it was. Tiny embers of flame were dotted by the figure's back. As he drew nearer, I could see they were singed dark-feathered wings. This phantom slowly, silently approached. As he did so, it was like someone had just walked over my grave. For the phantom, when he came near me, seemed to scatter gloom, abandoned hope, misery, and the deepest, darkest mystery all across the room. This phantom was shrouded in a dark jade garment, only its soulless eyes, gaunt facial features and bony decaying head visible. Everything else of his body was concealed, the haunting aura more or less radiating from his face that was shadowed by his hood.  
However, suddenly, I noticed there was a lower feature visible. It was one bony hand with inhumanly long elongated fingers draped like twine around the black staff he held, a skull on the top. His presence gave off a sense of foreboding but I remained strong, this was just another denizen of the dark, nothing I hadn't fought before, so I was ready for anything. For I was still the Chipenden Spook, a position that I knew one day the lad would take up when the job became too much for me.  
But not yet, though.  
The last thing I expected this denizen to do was nod towards me. He beckoned me with his staff and something told me to obey. Something about this figure seemed familiar. Indeed, as I remembered, the Christmas spirits were right to say that this one was truly the most petrifying – if you were not a spook, that is.  
Shaking off the terror and burying it deep within me, I strode towards the figure. Once I was level with it, the phantom then stomped his staff on the floorboards three times.  
Suddenly, I felt like I was standing on air, the shrill cries of bats and birds associated with death consuming around me. When I was submerged in this spiralling dark mist, I saw no sign of the spirit.  
That is, until I fell on a derelict cobbled street. It looked so familiar, and then I saw the phantom.

It started with the pounding of hooves, big horseshoes.  
As the horse-drawn chariot drew nearer, I could see that these horses were shires (supposedly). They were dark and glossy with a ball of flame in each eye socket. Cinders and charred black hair made up their mane and tail too. However, the driver – the phantom – seemed even more menacing with his huge wings spread. He was like a sea eagle – a human-sized body with a wingspan the length of four human arms. Now those soulless eyes were glowing...red!  
Knowing I could not fight a phantom on a fast-going chariot, I ran as fast as I could. Being my age, that wasn't very fast so I had to use the size of the chariot against the phantom. I cut through the narrower streets, swerving round corners.  
Then, below my feet, I saw the phantom's shadow with no chariot, no shires. He was pointing with his staff to go through to the wider street. There were people around, so I would know quickly if the phantom and his chariot were coming.

I walked out onto the street to find the lad and the girl right by it.  
The Christmas ghost of present had been right: the girl would be in this condition. The bump was rather big and the lad was feeling it with his hand, the girl smiling all the while.  
Afterwards, they hugged.  
"Missed you, Tom Ward," she cried, "Ain't been the same without you!"  
The lad instantly started stroking her hair.  
"I'm here now and that's all that matters. How has the family been treating you, Alice?"  
"Away for a week now, Tom, but they weren't very nice. Oh, Tom, is it true? Is he really dead?" asked the girl.  
The lad nodded as they pulled apart, her hands still behind his neck.  
"I'm so sorry."  
"I'm not, Alice, now I can have you free from those people, you and our little girl," the lad smiled.  
So this was a second child the girl was carrying. If I'd already sent her away, that meant they must've snuck out to see each other.  
"Glad you're here, Tom, but it ain't just him that's dead...oh, Tom, you better come back with me!"  
So saying, the girl took the lad by the hand and led back to the house I'd decided I was going to send her to. I saw the shadow again as if it were saying to follow them when it pointed.  
I obeyed.

As I walked through the door when we finally came to the house, the door closed behind me and then the shadow appeared again through the shadow of the fireplace. It pointed up the stairs, saying that I had to follow them up. When I did, an awful shock awaited me.

In a small room with two single beds, on one of them, a little girl was laying with her hand on her chest, the other dangling off the edge of the bed. She was a deathly pale, her hair tangled and her eyes dim as they stared up at the ceiling, wide and completely diminished of hope.  
The bewildered lad took a step back and the girl threw her arms around him. He closed his watering eyes as his lips touched her hair but did not kiss.  
"What happened?" he asked softly.  
"Don't really want to talk about it, Tom, but you deserve to know. We better sit down."  
After taking him over to her bed, the girl took both his hands in hers and explained how their daughter had disobeyed the couple just once and they'd consequently beat her. The daughter gradually lost her willpower and died in her sleep.  
By the end of it, the lad had his arms wrapped around the girl, both with tears in their eyes.  
"I should've been here for longer, they never touched either of you when I visited," the lad said.  
The girl shook her head at that, looked up and touched his cheek with her thumb; only just managing to draw her head back from his shoulder.  
"Don't blame yourself, Tom, you couldn't stay or who knows what Old Gregory would've done!" the girl cried.  
"If I'd have been stronger and..."  
"Ssh, please, Tom, it wasn't your fault...Look at me."  
The lad looked down at her and stroked both her cheeks, his arm still around her.  
"None of this is your fault...it's his."  
The lad didn't answer, stood up and helped the girl to her feet.  
"I'm getting you out of here, Alice...now! We've already lost our daughter, I'm not losing you too!"  
The girl hugged him.  
"Let's just not...leave our baby here. Those people would leave her to rot."  
The lad nodded and gulped as he approached his daughter's bedside. He crouched down and briefly ran his thumb over her forehead. His hand swept back the loose, wispy strands of hair on her forehead and kissed it. Swallowing his tears, he closed her eyelids before lifting her up into his arms. The pair left the room quickly, unable to stand any more of it.

It was a shame, really. She was a pretty little girl that had hardly lived. But who was the man that had died? I was curious but the phantom hadn't finished here yet. The floorboards rose up and just when I thought one would hit my head, I found myself in a kitchen.

There was a table with four chairs. Opposite each other were the couple that I was going to sell the girl to.  
Putting the dinner on their plates was the girl. It was evident this was before the time I'd just seen.  
"Where's your girl, lass?" Mr Grey joked.  
"She's in bed after the beating _you _gave her!" the girl growled bitterly.  
"Don't use that tone with my husband or you'll get a beating as well!" his wife snapped angrily. "Besides, that Tom Ward isn't here so why should your little brat that talked back to my husband not get punished?"  
"It's barbaric!" the girl cried. "My daughter is not bratty and she's never wanted for anything."  
"Back-answer my wife one more time..." Mr Grey growled warningly.  
This was awful. When I talked to the couple, they seemed in need, not aggressive. It was never agreed a child would be a maid, just the girl, so why would they beat the child as well?

I felt incredibly guilty and this time, the walls moved towards me. They really seemed like they were going to crush me. That is, until I closed my eyes.  
When I opened them again as I felt a cold chill nip at the nape of my neck, I found myself staring at my Anglezarke house. Outside it was one gravestone that caught my eye:

_Here Lieth Zoe Ward_  
_Always Loved Forevermore  
Aged Four _

I felt sick to my stomach. I knew it was me who caused this and it felt like I'd killed the child myself.  
The phantom was perched on the gravestone so I turned to him.  
"Oh spirit, who was that man the couple were talking about?" I asked beseechingly, hoping it wasn't who I thought it was.  
Then, without a sound, the chariot approached the gravestone. The Christmas ghost of future got on and chased me again without warning.

I knew where he was chasing me somehow and feared getting worn out. But, we were there within two to three minutes.  
Just as I thought, I was standing by the bench in the western garden at my Chipenden house. There it was, a gravestone beside the bench, but the snow covered the name. So I approached it and scraped off the snow with the sleeve of my night shirt.  
Just as I feared, it just read:

_Here Lieth John Gregory  
Chipenden Spook _

Even though his face was shadowed and his voice silent, the phantom came up from behind me, pointed at the gravestone, and appeared to be laughing.  
I fell to my knees, begging.  
"Is there really no way, spirit, no way I can save this future from taking place? Must the dark chains be woven?"  
The phantom shook his head, then kicked me into the, suddenly, open grave. I tried grabbing onto something but it was no use.  
I was falling down...down...down...

I jerked up in bed, beads of sweat falling from my brow.  
I sighed heavily. It had just been a dream, but one I would learn from.  
With every bad decision made a person shapes a bad, terrible future from themselves. Everyone is master of their own fate.  
I would change my ways, I decided, starting from when I next woke up and there was no changing my mind.


	6. The Final Chapter - Tom Ward

_**The final instalment of A Spook's Christmas Carol. It will contain 'happy families' but when it comes to a Christmas story, what good Christmas story doesn't? **_

I awoke the next morning, Alice's head on my chest, dried tears on my nightshirt. Poor Alice had been crying for half of the night and there was nothing I could say or do to reassure her. But even if she didn't believe in me, I would stop her from being sent away this time. So I caressed Alice's shoulder furthest away from me. She stirred awake and flickered her eyes up towards me. I caught her lips with my own, but she instantly pulled back.  
"What's wrong?" I asked her.  
"Sorry, Tom, just not in the mood," she apologised.  
"Oh come on, Alice, don't be like that. I said I'd stop him from sending you away and I will."  
Mr Gregory entered the room, interrupting us. There was a look in his eyes I couldn't quite recognise but I held Alice close, I wasn't losing her.  
He looked at us in turn and sighed.  
"You just can never obey a simple instruction, can you? Never mind, just downstairs, both of you," he ordered.  
He gave one final nod and slammed the door behind him as he left.

Once Alice and I were dressed, we walked downstairs hand in hand to find Mr Gregory sitting at the table in the kitchen. He gestured for us to sit down and looked serious. But there was something about his eyes that told me he was cheerful.  
Alice and I sat down next to each other, her hand finding mine under the table.  
"I've come to a final decision. You might say it came to me in a dream but my decision is this...the girl can stay just as long as you both promise to never keep secrets again," the Spook told us.  
Now a slight smile was on his face. I couldn't believe what I was hearing.  
It was when Alice had a knowledgeable glint in her big brown eyes that I was in for an even greater shock.  
"Well, if those are your terms then there is one secret I've been keeping – for a day or so," she turned to look at me with a smile. "Tom, you're going to be a father!"  
Both Mr Gregory and I were shocked.  
I couldn't think of what to say. I'd proposed to Alice because I wanted her to be my family, now we were starting a family together. I was so happy and didn't know what to do other than hug Alice...my Alice.  
"Merry Christmas, Tom," she said into my ear.  
"Well, that is cause for celebration!" said the Spook.  
I couldn't believe this. The Spook seemed to have changed, in all the good sense. He seemed more cheerful and more accepting of Alice being my wife.  
How could one person change overnight? I was happy, yes, but I was baffled by the Spook's behaviour and his sudden change of heart and mood.

[INSERT: Line Break]

The day passed us by at an alarming rate but it was a good day. I couldn't ask for Christmas to be any other way.  
In the evening, a Christmas miracle occurred. It was Alice's idea and I had no idea how she knew – I didn't even know Mr Gregory had a family with Meg.  
We headed out to meet his daughter, son-in-law, granddaughter and grandson-in-law in the afternoon. They were lovely people and Alice made friends with Leila's daughter quickly while we made the arrangements.  
When they arrived, it brought Mr Gregory so much joy – a light in his eyes that I had never seen before and one that I would carry with me until my dying day. He also looked astonished that they were there, shooting me and Alice a knowing look.  
When the evening was approaching, an aura of mystery lit up Mr Gregory's family's faces. I looked at Alice who shrugged. We were sitting by the fire and Alice was tucked under my arm, my hand spread on the tiny swell of her belly. The family were passing around guesses on the genders of both Leila's baby, and mine and Alice's baby.  
All of a sudden, another knock came to the door, just when silence fell. The boggart didn't react and so I could only assume it was an expected visitor.  
I got the door and found someone very familiar standing there.

Meg Skelton.

I gawped. Meg was supposed to have gone back to her homeland and even though she was human, I wouldn't have expected her to still be roughly the same age as Mr Gregory. According to the bestiary, when lamias return to human form, they were young again. So how was it she wasn't?  
"Hello, Tom, nice to see you again. No doubt this is a shock to you but my daughter told me to come. Is she here?" asked Meg.  
I nodded. "They all are."  
"Can I come in?"  
I nodded again and, closing the door behind Meg, I took her into the kitchen where everyone was.  
"Mother, I wondered when you'd turn up," said Leila.  
But Meg only nodded slightly, she was looking more at Mr Gregory who was also looking at her – only in surprise.  
"Meg?"  
She nodded with a smile as he approached her.  
"I thought you went back to -"  
"Greece? I did, then our daughter came and visited me regularly. I don't know why I'm not young again. I'm glad I've got to see you again though, John."  
Everything was silent, but it wasn't an awkward silence.  
Alice's head and mine touched as we watched this very moving moment. The others were looked stimulated too as both Mr Gregory and Meg embraced. Clearly, Meg still did have feelings for him.  
Their family was now together.  
So it _was _true, Christmas was the time of year that brought families closer together.

It was a wonderful evening and a very cheerful Christmas dinner with laughter. It was almost like living back on the farm. The atmosphere was warm and travelling home was what was mainly discussed. Meg decided to stay, to Mr Gregory's delight, and the rest of their family were staying until the New Year so Leila could spend time with her parents. The other thing was catching up on lives.  
Meg's sister, Marcia, had been slain a year ago so Meg had agreed without hesitation to return here.

Whilst everyone was talking, when it got a little loud, I took Alice by the hand quietly. We stood in the doorway under mistletoe and giggled softly once Alice had looked up and noticed this. I leaned down whilst she tilted her head upwards. Our arms and bodies locked, our lips connected.  
As our lips parted, Alice kissed me again, only this time with more passion.  
"I...love you...Tom..." she spoke into our kissing.  
"And I...you..." I replied.  
When we were done, Meg came and took us back to the kitchen, apologising for interrupting the moment. Mr Gregory, then, took us up to our room and showed us the reason why, since his family came round, they all wouldn't let us up there for a quiet five minutes. He'd put in our room a small double bed and a cradle.  
"Thank you," I said to him. "But what made you change your mind about Alice staying here and, well…all this?"  
"I learned somehow that with every good decision made, shapes a good promising future," he grinned.  
Alice kissed my cheek with tears in her eyes. She was just as shocked and moved by Mr Gregory's burst of generosity as I was.

Mr Gregory was right about good decisions, I made mine and now a new life was soon to be born. My future was with Alice, a new family, a new start. That was my spook's destiny.


End file.
